The Republic of T.

Book Meme

If there's one thing that's been a constant in my life, it's reading. Thus, I've always had lots of books. I currently have three books sitting on my nightstand waiting to be read. And I'm once again approaching the point of having more books than I have shelf space, even though I recently donated a bunch of books to a yard sale fundraiser.

So, a book meme seems natural. I'm actually interested to see how I'll answer.

Work and Play

I've been thinking a lot about work lately. And, no, I don't mean specifically my job. I mean thinking about the idea of work; the concept of work and the role that it plays in everyday life. Lately I've been reading books about working and watching movies about working. Today as I was riding the bus home I was reading a particular book when I came across a sentence that made me stop and think.

When we can play at our work seriously, the way children do when they are totally devoted to building a sand castle or playing hide and seek, a save haven opens up within us, a kind of freedom.

I stopped and thought about whether there were times when my work felt like "play," and to be honest, given the kind of work I'm doing now, there are a lot of moments when it feels just like "play." I spend a fair amount of time at work doing two things I have to admit I love: reading and writing. Plus there's the added bonus that my work involves connecting with people through writing, something else that excites me.

As the bus approached my stop, I realized that in the past few months something has changed about the way I look at myself and my life. The evidence is in the fact that I'm doing something these days that I often hesitated to do in the past. These days I call myself a writer. Until now, other people had called me writer, but I'd resisted applying the term to myself. When I asked myself why, the only honest answer was that for a long time I didn't think I deserved to call myself a writer.

What changed? It's hard to pinpoint. I guess it started a few months ago, around the time I spotted another book, bearing a title identical to the question I was asking myself a the time. That lead to other books on the same subject matter. (I should add here that reading — and the learning that goes hand in hand with it — is another love of mine.) Reading, and thinking about what I was reading led me to recall the things that I'd always done and always loved. Writing, it turns out was always one of them.

Since I learned to hold a crayon, I don't remember a time when I wasn't writing. In the 8th grade I attempted to write a civil war novel. (I kid you not. The problem was I managed to sum up the entire war in about 8 chapters.) In high school it was poetry, mostly bad and (now) mostly lost. In college, it was more poetry, this time somewhat good; actually, good enough to get published in the university's student-run literary journal (along with one short story), a couple of local literary journals, and even one national literary journal. From there I turned to op-ed columns and entertainment writing for the university newspaper. Since then I've done similar writing for the local gay newspaper here in D.C., and my last couple of jobs have included a lot of writing. In fact, my previous boss referred to me as the department "wordsmith." No matter what period of my life I examine, writing is an integral part of. Take it away, and something of myself goes with it.

So how does writing feel like play to me? It's hard to describe, because writing is such a solitary and intimate act. Eventually it does involve others, but at the start it's me, the words, and the medium I'm using. There's a certain kind of excitement that I've always gotten from using languge well, from a phrase well turned, or words well chosen. And on a broader level, there's something satisfying about pulling together loose strands of ideas into a single, cogent, comprehensible piece. That level of satisfaction exists for me whether anyone reads what I've written or not, but another layer is added when something I've written is read and enjoyed by someone else, and maybe even moves then or changes them a little. Then it's no longer an entirely solitary act, but an act of connecting with others. Maybe that's just what I'm supposed to be doing. So, I'm a writer.

Looking at it that way, it's no wonder I took to blogging the way that I have. It encompasses all of the above for me in a way that little else does. Before, I thought that calling myself a writer meant that I had to have at least one book to my credit, or a huge stack of clippings. Now I just feel that if I'm writing and using my writing to reach out to, connect with and move others, then at the very least I'm on the right track. And if it happens that the above is also part of how I earn a living, that's the icing on the cake. In fact, it's almost like eating my cake and having it too.

Being Green

As I stood at the bus stop this evening, waiting to go home and listening to music as I often do during my commute, I opened the latest book I'm reading—Work as a Spiritual Practice by Lewis Richmond—and picked where I'd left of this morning, when I arrived a the bus stop by my office. It seemed appropriate that Shirley Horne's version of "It's Not Easy Being Green"—one of the songs that would be added to the soundtrack of my life, if my life had a soundtrack— began to play just as I started reading the chapter on failure.

It's not that easy being green; Having to spend each day the color of the leaves. When I think it could be nicer being red, or yellow or gold... or something much more colorful like that.

It's not easy being green.
It seems you blend in with so many other ord'nary things.
And people tend to pass you over 'cause you're
not standing out like flashy sparkles in the water
or stars in the sky.

Quote of the Day

Read this morning in Working by Studs Terkel, on my way to work this morning:

I don't think the antithesis of love and happiness is hatred. I think it's fear. That's what kills everything." - Rip Torn, Actor -

The Book of the Dead

Mary Roach is a bit of loon. She's also a talented writer. It takes a certain amount of talent produce prose, on the subject of dead and decaying human flesh, that is well written enough to not only keep the reader turning pages but also wanting more at the end. (Her description of the process of human decay is at once memorable and entertaining.) It also takes a certain kind of reader to buy and read a book about the adventures of human cadavers. I'm not sure what kind of reader that is, but I'm now sure I'm one of them.

I happened upon Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers while perusing through a bookstore in downtown D.C., looking for something to read. I'd seen the book on display earlier, but left it behind. I kept thinking about reading it, though, so the next time I was in the book store I picked up a copy along with the other sutff I was buying.

Book Binge

Somebody stop me. I'm doing it again. I didn't realize it until the Amazon.Com order arrived at work today with the three books I ordered. I'm on another book buying binge. I'm not entirely sure when it started. Maybe it wasI got to knocking around on my wish list at Amazon.Com. Or maybe it was when I wandered through the bookstore near my office last week.

I think it was the bookstore. That's what got me started. I picked up a copy of A Working Stiff's Manifesto by Iain Levison. I'm not sure what got me intersted in it. I guess changing jobs made me curious about how other people relate to their work. The Levison book was a quick read, but only served to whet my appetite. So, I went back to the bookstore in search of similar works. I ended up having to choose between Working by Studds Terkel or Gig: Americans Talk About Their Jobs by John Bowe and others. I chose the latter, seeing as how it's something of a classic. Still, it seems a bit dated, so I'll probably go back and get Gig once I'm done with Working. On my way to the cash register I grabbed Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach, because the subject matter (I sometimes like morbid topics) caught my eye.

But it didn't end there. There's yet another bookstore right on the corner where I catch the bus home. Yes, I'm caught between two bookstores. I never had a chance. Anyway, this store has a cart they wheel outside and park in front of the store, which displays their remaindered and bargain books. I'd just finished the Levison book (which I enjoyed and intend to review at some point, maybe when I finish the other work-related books), and out of the corner of my eye I spot his novel Since the Layoffs on the sales cart. Next thing I know, I'm in the store buying the book, and back out in time to catch the bus home.

Then there was Amazon. It occured to me that instead of going out to Best Buy to purchase a copy of the sequel to my favorite computer game later this month, I could just just order my copy in advance and have it shipped to me. That required a trip down my Wish List. The next thing I know, I've picked up three books as well; the ones that arrive today. Two of the titles have been on my list every since I found out about them through reading Book Lust by Nancy Pearl. I got Banvard's Folly because I thought it'd be interesting to read about some of history's "also rans," the men and women who made their mark but then slipped in to obsurity. (And maybe to feel better about my own relative obscurity.) Then i grabbed. Mr Wilson's Cabinet of Wonders, again because I like reading about weird stuff. Finally, back to the subject of work but with a different spin in Work As A Spiritual Practice by Lewis Richmond, because I want to align the way I approach my work more with the way I try to live my life.

At this point, I'm running out of room on my bookshelves, but that doesn't stop me. I just buy ebooks to read on my PDA. Currently I have Brave New World taking up bytes, because it's one of those books I've always felt I should read. I've also got We the Media waiting for me in electronic format, because it's pretty much required reading for the field I'm in now.

So, as you can see. I have a real problem. I just can't stop myself.

My name is Terrance, and I'm addicted to books.

Barman Rides Again

A while back I reviewed Barman, Alex Wellen's memoir on his last year or law school and his experience preparing for and taking the bar, and working for a law firm in New York. It was one of the books I picked up when I was doing intense research on law school (BTW, the applications are still coming in; the latest from Catholic Universit Law School, one of the schools I'm less likely to consider when I do apply).

Since then, I've had the pleasure of striking up an email correspondence and friendship with Alex. And though I'm a few days late in doing so, I wanted to acknowledge the publication of Barman in paperback. When it comes to books about the experience of going to law school—though the closest I've come to that experience thus far was a walk through a law library—I rank Alex's story among the best I've read thus far, because he's not so much giving advice as he is telling his story, and telling it an accesible, humourous voice that's also entertaining to read.

If you missed it in hardback, and you're interested in reading about one guy's experience with law school, the bar, and practicing law, you should pick up the paperback. (I have the hardback, which I'll take with me when to get autographed when Alex's promotional tour brings him to DC.) Alex gives his own reasons why you might want to pick up the paperback even if you have the hardback.

(1) The packaging: The cover is glossy, vibrant, and fun, and the book is compact,

(2) The paperback contains images of the innovative table tennis paddle that started it all, and

(3) If you buy the BARMAN paperback on amazon.com between August 24th and the 31st, I'll send you a free Candy Barman. (Legal Disclaimer: While supplies last and reasonably doctored-up proof of purchase required.)

The paperback became available on the 24th, but with work, family and jury duty commanding my already challenged attention span, the date slipped by me. So, I wanted to take the opportunity now to put in a word for a Alex and his great book.

What Are You Reading?

A project I just got at work today inspired me to ask the folks who stop by here regularly what you all are reading these days. Being a lifelong bookwork, I'm usually working my way through at least a couple of books, and I'm always looking for what I'm going to read next. If I don't have a book to read, I feel somewhat lost. One of the things I first liked about blogging was that people listed on their blog the books they were reading. (I discovered an author who became a favorite of mine buy randomly surfing blogs.)

So, what are you all reading?

I'll start. Right now I'm reading Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach. Why? Well, despite my decided non-scientific bent, I've always had an interest in forensics, and other somewhat morbid topics, so this one seems like a good possibility. So far, it's made me laugh out loud a couple of times, and I'm only into the first chapter. I'm finding it fascinating. My other book is an old classis, Working by Studs Terkel. The reason? Well, I just started a new job, plus I've been reading stuff about finding a life purpose. Besides, I'm fascinated with how people relate (or don't) to their work.

And while your at it, what books would you recommend other people read? Again, I'll start. My recommendations are:

• A Peoples' History of the United States: 1492 to Present by Howard Zinn
  
• The Culture of Make Believe and A Language Older than Words by Derrick Jensen
  
• A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson
  

What are your recommendation?

There Is No Periphery

Just a few days ago I finished reading Joe Trippi's book The Revolution Will Not Be Televised : Democracy, the Internet, and the Overthrow of Everything, which reads as part memoir and part manifesto, and I have to admit Trippi pretty much made a believer out of me. I also have to admit I was pretty much a believer before I picked up the book. So, for me it was the equivilant of attending a really good "revival meeting."

One thing stuck with me after reading Trippi's book, and it had more to do with how I see myself than how I see politics now; or maybe how I see myself in relation to the political sphere. I've been in DC for 10 years now, and in that time I worked with and for a number of people who—if they weren't in the center of political power—at least had the ears of people in the center of political power. By comparison, I've always thought of myself thought of myself as being on the periphery of the political scene, somewhere along the far flung outer edges of any kind of political power. Though I've walked the same halls as the big decision makers in D.C., and even had the opportunity to lobby one or two of them (on my desk at home is a picture from a lobby visit to then Senator Max Cleland, in which I got to take part). But after reading Trippi's book, I'm beginning to believe something new: there is no periphery, anymore.

Trippi, throughout the book, mentions the 600,000+ Dean supporters gathered via the internet/web, and often credits them with many of the Dean campaign's successes. In reading Trippi's book, I found myself remembering just when, where and how I became part of that 600,000+.

Specifically, I tried to recall when I first became aware of Howard Dean. the time was shortly after Vemont started doing civil unions for same sex couples. I knew that Dean had signed that legislation, and I knew he'd been vocal about opposing the war in Iraq. A member of our babysitting co-op was a early Dean supporter, and encouraged us to go out and hear him speak at a rally in Falls Church (which turned out to be the kick-off of the Sleepless Summer tour). So, the hubby, the kid (who was attending his first ever political rally) made our way out to Falls Church to stand among 4,000 others.

I guess it was there that I became a Dean supporter, and excited about a candidate in a way I hadn't been since Bill Clinton. Clinton won me over by saying to gay Americans "I have a vision for America, and it includes you." Dean first impressed me as a presidential candidate by having the cajones to criticize Bush at a time when congressional Democrats were behaving as though they'd been recently neutered; that and the fact that he actually uttered the phrase "social justice." To tell the truth, both of them "had me at 'hello.'"

I became one of those people who returned to Blog for America on daily basis. I took part in discussions on the blog, and blogged about Dean on my own blog. I was one of those who dontated to the campaign via the internet, sending in my donation of $100-or-less. I was one of those who voted on whether Dean should forego matching funding, etc. About halfway through Trippi's book, I realized that I was one of those 600,000+ people he credited with changing the way politics gets conducted in this country, and if that was the case then I was no longer on the periphery, and nor were the other 600,000+ "Deaniacs." In fact, there really was no periphery anymore, because we shifted the focus of the process and the way things were usually done.

Now, in many ways, I find myself in the middle of the revolution Trippi is writing about, sometimes wondering just how I ended up there. I won't say I'm closer to the center, since there isn't a center if there isn't a periphery. But I realize that I've somehow found myself in a position I never expected; in a position to make an even greater difference and to help shape the way that the internet is used to change business-as-usual poltics in this country, and that's a pretty exciting place to be. I don't know if Trippi's predictions for the future will pan out in the end, but I do know that whatever the future holds, I have a part in making it happen.

Synchronicity?

A couple of months ago, I was in a bookstore and happened to pick up a copy of Joe Trippi's book The Revolution Will Not Be Televised : Democracy, the Internet, and the Overthrow of Everything. I flipped through the pages, looked at the pictures from the Dean campaign. I rememember thinking to myself that I should buy the book, and that the folks from the Dean web team would have been an intersting group of people to work with. I put the book back on the shelf and walked away thinking how I'd like to have had that opportunity. The thought, I guess, wafted its way out into the universe as I went on my way.

Today, a couple of months later, I'm on my lunchbreak. I walk into a bookstore (because I can't keep myself out of them) and I happen across Trippi's book again. I flip through the pages, look at the pictures, and realize "these are the people I'm working with."

I bought the book.